I posted earlier on this blog about the progressive metal act OPETH bringing out an album in 2008. Well, they did, and guess what, it is brilliant! What follows is a review from the first impressions of ‘WATERSHED’, the new album by Opeth.

Opeth has always had a sound of their own, and they never fail to impress with that unique sound, which is all over this album too.

Watershed starts off with ‘Coil’, the first track. This is a soft, sad-sounding track with Mikael Akerfeld, the frontman, singing in clear vocals. It is easily one of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard, and it also features female vocals. I had an impression that Watershed would be like opeth’s earlier album ‘Damnation’, which was clear throughout. But I was to be proved wrong.

’Heir Apparent’ is a powerful plunge into the Traditional Opeth sound, with Mikael pulling off some of his finest growling, real heavy guitar riffs, psycho double bass drumming, and overwhelming energy. Towards the end, Heir Apparent takes a turn into the melodic lane and ends on an eerie note.

’Lotus Eater’, one of my favourite tracks off the album, starts with a low hum by Mikael but soon bursts into raw power. This track has some killer guitar solos in the middle.

’Burden’, the next track is one in which Mikael uses clear vocals throughout. A very melancholic track, this can hit you hard even though there ain’t a bit of heaviness in it. The acoustic outro section is priceless!

’Porcelain Heart’ is my favourite track from Watershed. It starts with an ominous riff and alternates between Heavy and Melodic sessions. Mikael’s voice is clear throughout and perfectly suits the song’s sound. The acoustic solo is simple but real powerful. In my opinion, Porcelain Heart is flawless, and is something for the band to be proud of for a long long time. Check out the song’s video on Youtube, it’s Wicked!

’Hessian Peel’ is the longest track on the album (11:25). It is a powerful progressive track with death-style vocals, heavy riffs, and violent drumming. Obviously it is based on folk music.

’Hex Omega’ is the closing track, and it brings out a worthy end to such a marvellous record.

Watershed is one of the best albums of Opeth. I’ve always had great expectations about this album ever since I heard it was coming, and as an Opeth fan I wasn’t disappointed at all. I've been listening to Watershed everyday for a month now, and it's still growing on me.

Opeth has gone through line-up changes, but still has that signature Opeth sound. Mikael is a musical genius and this album just reflects that. Axenrot has done a great job drumming. The lyrics are great, and are more like beautiful little poems. Overall, it’s an album that I recommend you to buy. Go ahead, you won’t be disappointed!